Found grandpas old cigar. Help :-)
Hey everyone, first time posting here. I've been dabbling with cigars for a year now, so you'll be able to tell that I'm no expert. My grandpa recently passed away, and my mother found an old cigar in his sock drawer. Nobody else in my family smokes cigars, so she gave it to me. The band says Dunhill Monte Cruz Las Palmas. The cigar is in the original Monte Cruz tube, which seems to have some kind of cedar lining on the inside. From my limited research online, it seems this cigar was made in the '70s or '80s in the Canary Islands and was one of the first to use the sun-grown method after the Cuban revolution (?)
Anyway, I'm having fun researching it, but it is very dry. The condition looks near perfect—no cracks or peeling, just dry. I researched a little bit about how to rehydrate an old cigar, and the consensus seems to be gradually increasing the humidity level, so that's what I plan to do with Boveda packs. Maybe starting with 49%, then going to 58%, 62%, and settling around 69%. Feel free to offer advice on this process; I'd greatly appreciate it.
The other thing I’m unsure about is whether or not I should keep the cigar in the tube while I rehydrate it. I prefer to keep it in the tube for protection, but the tube has a screw-on cap, and my concern is that the cigar won't absorb enough moisture inside the tube. Again, any advice on this is appreciated.
I'm not exactly sure what my plan is for this cigar. Maybe I'll smoke it on a special occasion, even though I've read the full flavor won't come back after hydrating it, or maybe I'll trade it or simply hold onto it as a memento. Whatever the case, I thought it'd make an interesting discussion for my first post on this forum. I've attached a photo of the cigar that I found online. It's not the exact cigar I found, just an exact match from the internet. Haven't been able to find one of these for sale. Looking forward to what may come!
Comments
My thoughts are to just keep it as is, as a memento of your grandpa. I get the idea of wanting to rehydrate and smoke it, but it won't be what it's supposed to be - no way it's an enjoyable smoke - and then it'll be gone. Save yourself the time/effort/emotion, and simply save it as a reminder of the old guy.
@kendall
Leave it in the tube, cap off.
I know, You're a big dog and I'm on the list.
Let's eat, GrandMa. / Let's eat GrandMa. -- Punctuation saves lives
It'll be fine once the swelling goes down.